Thursday, February 12, 2015

ARE REPUBLICANS ANTI OR PRO FRANCIS?

Will the Pope receive a warm welcome as they will undoubtedly give to Netanyahu when he addresses Congress to promote war(s) on terror. Or will they give Francis the cold shoulder much like they do to the president? After all Francis and Obama (not to forget Rand Paul) are pretty much on the same page when it comes to income inequality. It will be interesting to see if the Catholic congresspersons will give their spiritual leader a thumbs up or boo him off the pulpit. Let the squirming begin.

When Pope Francis becomes the first pope to address a joint session of Congress, in September, many Catholic theologians and activists expect that he will focus on rising global economic inequality rather than on the hot-button cultural issues that often dominate U.S. politics.

Many pundits predict that the pope will use his critique of the current global economic order to challenge his audience on the role of government in alleviating inequality as well as on immigration and climate change.

The central message of Francis’ papacy has been that “income and wealth inequality in our world is the source of social ills,” said Sister Simone Campbell, executive director of Network, a Catholic social justice lobbying group best known for its Nuns on the Bus campaigns challenging income inequality and pressing for immigration reform. “Until we remedy that, we won’t have any sort of real peace or good community.”